San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1887-08-01
NoTA REPUBLICAN WEDGE.

In the Galveston News Of the 9th Of
July, over the signature Of Sam q.
Ragsdsle, appears report of Judge w.
X. Romans speech TO cOlOred audi
ence in Burleson county in which the
judge is represented as saying that pro-
hibition was republicanism in disguise
Holman, according to Ragsdsle, was de-
livering prohibition speech and said:
THAT prohibition was republican
movement, first in8ugurated and car
ried in a republican state by IL Tepubii-
can majority, and afIerward carried in
three other republican states by the sup
port Of the republicans, and that u pro.
hibitiOn plank would be placed in the
republican national platform next SUN
mer and that no man could be a true re
publican and an snti-prOhibtiOnist. He
quoted many letters written to him and
published in the Caldwell News from
many prominent republicans-Jack
Evans among the Notwithstanding
the cause OF prohibition, in order to
show that prohibition was Il republican
principle, and said further in support OF
this proposition that the democrats 10
Washington county who hung the three
negroes at Brennan last fall were all
anti-prohibitiOnists,a and all the Tepubli-
cans there were prOhibitiOnists."
As to the matter OF Judge Romans
speech the LIGHT is not advised beyond
the report given by Sam G. Ragsdale.
Democratic reports of republican
speeches are not necessarily accurate.
The report has none the less
gone over Texas and is comment
ed upon as true to the disad-
vantage of the republican party. The
bitiOn is matter of record and there need
be no manner Of doubt concerning this
thing. The republican national platform
OF 1884 made no reference to prohibition
for the very sufficient reason that the
prohibition Of the sale Of liquors within
. state are wholly matters for state leg
islation. The republican party in its
state convention at Waco, last August,
made the only declaration on this sub
ject that Texas republicans could make,
and under all the pressure brought TO
bear by the temperance wing upon that
convention, 1t went no whit farther than
declaring the right of petition in ac-
cordanoe with the bill of rights. II the
prohibition party desires to put itself
upon record as republican, that is its
own affair. The LIGHT is competent re-
publican authority for the statement
that the republican party Of the nation
is not ohsrgesble with the folly of pro.
hibitlon endorsement, nor yet is the re-
publicanism of Texas SO obargesble. The
candidate OF the republican party for
governor, DR.. Cochran, of Dallas, has
taken the stump for anti-prOhibItiOn
and done good service. The DAILY
LIGHT and the Republican of this city
have advocated snti-prohibition from
the beginning. The LIGHT is today the
most outspoken and distinctively repub-
lioan journal in Texas and whenever
called upon by speech and pen,
1t has stood in the breach and
battled against prohibition. 1t has
done this from principle, fully aware
tuhb db hbbdllCu ny
this split in its ranks over the amend
ment clauses, and that every word
spoken against anti-prOhibition was a
word against democratic ascendanoy in
Texas. Such facts being notorious it is
very ungracious recognition of such
services to be charged with directly
assisting the democratic disunionists Of
Texas. This is a question of the liber-
ties OF citizens under law. 1t is a ques-
ton which republicans In Texas are
interested in. The detection OF COlOred
voters has been brought about by
the preaching of prohibition min
listers and not by republican Or
ators. Had the republicans of Texas
taken the prohibition side Of this ques-
ton and put their weight as a body into
that scale the result might have been
different. The republicanism OF Texas
Is insuted and unjustly stigmatised
when It is asserted that the republican